Published 8:00 pm, Saturday, July 24, 2004

Building a new jail and open communication are on the top of Jerry Nielsens list.

In a recent Daily News editorial board interview, Nielsen stated his priorities and how he plans to achieve them if hes elected Midland County sheriff. Nielsen retired from the sheriffs office in 2001 as a captain after 29 years.

He said the sheriff should have a visible role in locating and building a new jail, adding county residents need to be included in the process and information should be available to all.

"Its needs to get off the ground," he said of the jail. "Thats my primary focus."

Issues such as how big the jail should be, where it should go and how to pay for it are all issues he has suggestions for and information about. He said the option of renting beds could provide double income for jail beds by renting a set number per year first to the federal government  which rarely fills the spaces rented  then renting the unused beds to other counties.

Nielsen said the new jail should be built somewhere with enough room to have a courthouse next to it in the future, adding he believes a new courthouse will follow the jail within 10 to 20 years.

He noted most of the rented beds are filled by people convicted of white-collar crime, not hard core prisoners, adding jails carefully select the inmates they send and dont send troublemakers.

Another goal is communicating with the public, other law enforcement agencies and the media. Open communications leads to trust, he said.

"You get further with communicating with people," he said. Going to township meetings, using the D.A.R.E. program and reading to children in schools are ways to let the community know deputies are there to help. He also said hed provide more information to the media, including giving notice when events occur, even if they cannot be reported upon in detail due to ongoing investigations.

Nielsens campaign is being supported by some sheriffs deputies. He said some are not free to express their thoughts. A letter to the editor written by Sheriff John S. Reder criticized some of Nielsens supporters and sheriffs office retirees as being out of touch with the office. Nielsen said these supporters are knowledgeable, and he acknowledges that some had problems with the office.

"Youre going to have issues, no matter where youre at, what business youre in," he said.

Nielsens campaign literature states "there needs to be truth and honor in serving as a law enforcement officer," and the sheriff should set a good example. Also on Nielsens radar are personnel using county-owned cars for personal business and trips.

Other items Nielsen is looking at include:

 adding technology to allow paperless ticketing, to save time for deputies, citizens and the court system. "Id like to see Midland County be on the leading edge of police technology," he said.

 working on more crime prevention by adding two deputies to every shift, possibly paid for with grant money, and providing more educational opportunities for the community.

 sharing information from investigations with other law enforcement agencies to solve more crimes.